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bjh is right.... I have worked in a couple of food chains and dated someone who worked in another....all of which I am sure everyone on here has heard of and eaten at.... TIP PEOPLE!!! Believe me... it is in your best interest. I am talking pizzas dropped on the floor "by accident" and cooked just for you....the oldest baked potato from the "stash" for the very BEST customers to be LOADED and sent out to the table nice and pretty.... people, you have no idea....
I do not tip my servers becuase it is "in my best interest" rather becuase my water was kept full, the staff anticipated my needs (mentioning I was a vegetarian and the waiter saying "then I will make certian that side salad you ordered does not have bacon added) the service was prompt but not rushed etc.
I did wait tables in college too and have recieved a wide range of tips from 10% to 100%. When I am out I will not only give great tips for great service, but will also notify the management or corporate.
When given poor service - well that does not last long - I will either leave or sit somewhere else. I surely speak to management and corporate - but that is for BAD service - all of which I have gotten only a handful of times. I am talking, waiter leaning on the bar while I can see my food in the window and my water is empty.
I'm a server and trust me, we DO remember bad tippers. We don't do anything to their food but they don't get it first out or their drinks refilled as fast as other regulars. And trust me, we all tell each other who's good and who's not..
Servers have each other's back.... especially since at the end of the night- they often have to tip out the bus boy, the hostess, and the bar tender.... that dips into the money they make for the night... they don't get to go home with ALL the tips they make.... Well, many servers at various restaurants are forced to do that.... They want to make good tips.
I usually tip 15 - 20%, sometimes more, for a traditional sit down meal if the service is good. For takeout I usually tip about $3, regardless of the cost of the meal. I can't imagine the labor required to assemble a couple of takeout boxes being worth more than $3 - $5 in this part of the U.S. (NC). That being said, if the person assembling the takeout and taking my money is the bartender, I'll leave around $5 instead of the usual $3 I'd leave for the cashier. There are some places I'll leave $0 simply because they're rude. Also, at some establishments I'll leave $0 because the person putting the takeout bag together is from the kitchen and I think the tip is unlikely to reach them. I'm not going to give someone a tip for punching buttons and handing me a bag they themselves didn't assemble.
I guess if it was a really large or difficult order I'd leave more, but I've never been in that situation.
Where I used to work we always gave a small tip for carryout from restaurants (not fast food) . After a while we noticed one of our favorite restaurants started giving us unusually generous portions, and ocassionally we'd find things like an extra order of chips and salsa, or an appetizer we hadn't ordered. Coincidence? Maybe....
I'm something of a tip fanatic. I've been that server, I've been that cashier, I've been that pizza delivery person, and now that my life has reached the point where I'm on the other side of things, I don't forget. Bare-bones minimum for reasonably good service is 15%. Excellent service earns 20%, sometimes more. Fast, friendly delivery earns a minimum of 10%, usually more. Picking up carryout is based on the complexity and size of the order more than anything, but it's always at least a couple of bucks.
At the same time, though, I have high standards for service, simply BECAUSE I've done those jobs. I know the difference between excellent, adequate and unsatisfactory, and I tip accordingly. If the server leaves me sitting for 45 minutes without my food and without a refill on my beverage, their tip will reflect it.
The other thing that I do when I get service at either end of the spectrum - superlative or dreadful - is to ask to talk to the manager on duty. They need to know about both, you know. It's actually kind of funny to see the kind of responses I get when I have something positive to say. I always start by saying something like "may I speak with the manager, please?" I can see the alarm bells go off in the eyes of the person I'm talking to, and frequently the manager will start by saying "what was wrong?" It's always so much fun to upset their expectations by telling them how well their employee performed, and I have never gotten anything but gratitude in response. And I know that the next time raises are handed out, or if someone has to be let go because of slower business, that good word I put in for an excellent employee just might make the difference in the manager's decision.
I think 10% is reasonable. They're not getting you drink refills and waiting on you at a table. In other words, they work on you once, not in an ongoing fashion of serving all your needs which is what merits the 20% tip I generally leave at restaurants.
That's a good point, since they don't serve a table of people over an hour or more a smaller percent or a standard amount may be the better answer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cpg35223
I pay tips for people who take my order, bring the food to my table, and make sure I'm happy. I do not tip people who stand at a cash register, input my order, pick it up and put it in a bag. So I'll tip at a Sonic, but I won't tip at a Burger King.
I don't think anyone tips at fast food, though as some have mentioned some places have tip jars these days. I've seen those at ice cream and coffee serving establishments, never chain fast food.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cpg35223
And making the idle threat, "Tip the counter help or he'll spit in your coffee," is a really, really lame and noxious response.
Almost inevitably, the people who complained at the different restaurants where I waited were the same people who were always gossiping or smoking in the back, not doing a good job of guiding the customer, not paying attention to their tables, and not making sure the food was right. 99% of the time, if you take care of your customers, your customers will take care of you.
I don't think anyone here is making an idle threat, if that's what you meant... (How can we threaten anyone with saliva, etc. in their food or drink on a message board anyway? )... we are simply stating the facts. Heed them or not at your own discretion.
It is not at ALL surprising to me that the worst workers are the ones who get up to no good with people's food. As many have pointed out on this thread, there is not a lot of maturity in these workplaces.
Plus, no one is saying it is fair. And it is certainly unjustified that anyone would knowingly contaminate another person's food, but that is what can happen.
Quote:
Originally Posted by skbs
But, to ALWAYS tip poorly, or to never tip at all....regardless of the service..... the servers remember you.... that is what I am saying.
Or to be rude to the servers. My rule of thumb is, if I am going back to a restaurant I tip something for any level of service, because of the word of mouth among servers. I won't tip much for bad service, but I won't stiff them either.
The only time I don't tip is for BAD service if I know I will NEVER go back to that restaurant.
Quote:
Originally Posted by cr1039
I do not tip my servers becuase it is "in my best interest"
You may be enjoying more than food then.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MidwesternBookWorm
The other thing that I do when I get service at either end of the spectrum - superlative or dreadful - is to ask to talk to the manager on duty. They need to know about both, you know. It's actually kind of funny to see the kind of responses I get when I have something positive to say. I always start by saying something like "may I speak with the manager, please?" I can see the alarm bells go off in the eyes of the person I'm talking to, and frequently the manager will start by saying "what was wrong?" It's always so much fun to upset their expectations by telling them how well their employee performed, and I have never gotten anything but gratitude in response. And I know that the next time raises are handed out, or if someone has to be let go because of slower business, that good word I put in for an excellent employee just might make the difference in the manager's decision.
Yes! I've done that too and not just in restaurants. I've praised a clerk at Walmart to the mod because I recognize someone doing a tough job well. I wouldn't want to stand 8 hours a day and deal with the public.
I've often thought it should be a requirement that every human being works some kind of service job for at least 6 months of their lives. If that could be accomplished, we would all be better customers!
I've often thought it should be a requirement that every human being works some kind of service job for at least 6 months of their lives. If that could be accomplished, we would all be better customers!
Absolutely! In fact, we insisted that both of our offspring start their working lives in crappy food-service jobs, just for that very reason. They both had just a leeetle bit too much of that sense of entitlement as teens, and what they wouldn't hear from their parents, we knew they'd learn in a hurry from real-life experience. It paid off, too; not only are they both very good tippers, they also both regularly inspect the tips we leave at restaurants, and they challenge us if they don't think we're leaving enough.
I'm a server and trust me, we DO remember bad tippers. We don't do anything to their food but they don't get it first out or their drinks refilled as fast as other regulars. And trust me, we all tell each other who's good and who's not..
I used to carhop at a Big Boy's for four years. It paid all my college expenses (no student loans) so I had NO complaints.
Having said that, I tried to do a great job and was well paid for it. I had a couple of STIFFS. The people would pull up at 4:40 pm on Friday afternoons, order their food "to go" to avoid the state tax and would NEVER tip.
I would serve them well. BUT if I had three tipping customers nearby, they would get their order first.
I have been in the food service industry long enough to know how much a tip means. Be it a dollar or 50 cents. To answer the OP's question if you feel that there was service rendered that deserves a tip go ahead. It is your choice. We all have our own opinons on tipping. Some tip on percentage, some performance, and now adays what is affordable.
I take pride in what I do. My service is always with a smile Even if sometimes forced ha ha
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....the oldest baked potato from the "stash" for the very BEST customers to be LOADED and sent out to the table nice and pretty....
people, you have no idea....
)... we are simply stating the facts. Heed them or not at your own discretion. 
Even if sometimes forced ha ha